By Iva Butler
The Daily Times
MARYVILLE, Tenn. — A house more than a century old that had just been remodeled was heavily damaged by a fire Friday.
Tommy Russell and his wife and their uncle lived in the approximately 1,500-square-foot wood frame house built in 1900 at 4323 Sevierville Road, Maryville. The uncle was home at the time of the fire and was able to get out safely with the family pets.
Blount County Fire Department got the call at 2:11 p.m. and started arriving five minutes later.
“It appears the fire may have started in the attic from a wood stove. Something may have broke or got too hot,” said
Blount County Fire Chief Doug McCammon.
Attic fires are hard to extinguish and the house had been remodeled over the years and there may have been ceilings on top of ceilings.
“It was a hard fire to put out. The wind was blowing, which made it even harder,” he said.
Water had to be transported via pumper trucks about three miles from a fire hydrant near a market on Ellejoy Road, he said.
The house is owned by Jane Barham, whose son-in-law, David Richards is a full-time Blount County firefighter.
Richards was off duty, but after his in-laws called him he responded to the fire scene. He helped put out the fire, McClanahan said.
“It is always tough when somebody’s house burns, but the uncle and pets got out unharmed,” he added. “It was also tough on Richards.”
Firefighters were able to control the fire by 3:16 p.m., but were on the scene in the cold weather until 5:36 p.m. to ensure all the hot spots had been safely extinguished.
Blount County sent 14 firefighters and eight trucks to the scene.
Also responding were the Blount County Chapter of the American Red Cross, Rural/Metro Ambulance Service, Blount County Sheriff’s Department and Alcoa Electric Department.
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